


Saving Every Moment

by JuicyLeafs



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: For. Probably all 3 games, Gen Work, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Minato is my favourite and i cant write yu to save my life pls say you cant tell ;;, Minato is the Universe and that means hes Magic no i do not take constructive critism, Now with: marie and kotone, Rated T for swearing, Self-Indulgent, Spoilers, The Velvet Room (Persona Series), i love them both so much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:08:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24084091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JuicyLeafs/pseuds/JuicyLeafs
Summary: There is an incident. This in and of itself is unremarkable - it's the resulting effects that matter. It causes an unplanned, accidental ripple across time; as a result, three guests are pulled into the wrong rooms.Shenanigans ensue.A prisoner opens his eyes to the inside of a limo,  a grieving brother finds himself standing in an elevator, and what's the difference between a seal and a prison cell anyway?Now with a bonus chapter: from an elevator to limo, a girl crosses not only time, but also space.
Relationships: Caroline & Justine & Persona 3 Protagonist, Elizabeth & Persona 4 Protagonist, Female Persona 3 Protagonist & Marie (Persona Series), Margaret & Persona 5 Protagonist
Comments: 16
Kudos: 134





	1. Yu Narukami

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this while procrastinating my dumbass other persona fic, which is a mammoth of a project and like. Nearly 8/10ths done. Hoo boy. 
> 
> Anyway yeah. I hope you enjoy my fic!

Yosuke forces him into bed.

Yu doesn't want to be here - he wants to be going through the dungeon as soon as possible. He wants to punch Namatame in his stupid fucking face. He wants Nanako _back_ and _safe in his arms_ -

He tosses and turns all night before a voice calls out to him, forcing him into slumber.

"Come," an unfamiliar voice says, and he opens his eyes to familiar blue.

There is a woman he doesn't recognise staring at him. "Hello," she says. "You started entering just as I was leaving."

"Leaving?" Yu didn't know the residents were allowed to leave like that. He has to go with Marie whenever she wants to leave.

Whatever. He doesn't have time for this.

"My name is Elizabeth," the woman says, and tugs on the cuffs of her gloves. "What's yours?"

"Yu," he answers, short and to the point. Why the fuck is he here? Igor has no reason to call to him in his dreams like this, especially now. The man is always raving about him going on his journey - how about he let Yu _wake up and go on it_ -

It takes him too long to realise he isn't in his limo. He's in some sort of elevator, eternally going up.

"So you realised," Elizabeth says, grinning. "I think I will prolong my departure and stay with you for the duration of your visit."

"How do I wake up?" He asks, hands clenching into fists. He _doesn't have time for this_.

Elizabeth shrugs one shoulder. "I'm not sure," she says. "I can usually wake my guests, but I'm not your attendant. Besides, isn't it more interesting if you figure it out yourself?"

"No," Yu spits. "I need to go."

"What is so urgent?" She asks, stepping closer to him.

"Someone important to me is in danger," he snaps. "She'll die if I don't get to her as soon as possible."

Elizabeth tilts her head. "Who is this girl to you that you would risk your life for her?"

"Why does that matter? Just tell me how to leave!"

"I find it interesting," Elizabeth explains, unfazed by his anger. "Our previous guest gave up everything to save the people dear to him, too. Humans are endlessly fascinating."

Previous guest? Does that mean when his journey is over he won't be able to come here anymore? "I need to go," Yu insists, pushing the nagging questions from his mind.

"Oh, come now," Elizabeth says, raising an eyebrow. "You must know that you're sleeping in the real world, if you were dragged here like this. If you go now, you'll still be sleeping. Let's at least spend your dreaming time productively, and have a conversation."

Yu presses his face in his hands and takes some deep breaths. Holy shit. He'd rather save Nanako than sit here with this woman.

But she makes sense. Even if he _was_ able to leave just like that, he'd still be asleep. And if he woke up in the real world at the same time, he wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation to go back immediately without waiting for the others. Maybe he can get some information out of her about what's going on.

"What do you know about the TV world?" He asks.

"Never heard of it!" Elizabeth shoots back.

Well, there goes that idea.

She's fiddling with her gloves again. As if drawn by magnets, her eyes keep moving to the elevator door. One foot taps against the floor, unable to stand still.

"What are you waiting for?" Yu asks.

She cocks her head. "The truth," she says, "is that I cannot leave this room until your visit is over."

Yu frowns. That doesn't sound right. "But I can take Marie out of my room all the time-"

"You're not from here," Elizabeth cuts in. "If I leave with you, you'll either be in the past or I'll be in the future."

What. Time travel? When the fuck did _that_ come into play?

She looks at him, considering. "You’re from the future." She hums, putting a hand on her chin. "Do you know Margaret?”

Yu’s eyebrows rise. "I do."

"Margaret is my sister," she explains, grinning. "She's going to be taking my place as soon as I leave. I wonder if she'll miss me much."

If she does, Yu doesn't recall her ever talking about it. "Where are you going?" He can't help but ask. He's desperate to get Nanako back, but he feels like this woman may be in need of help.

"I mentioned that our previous guest is no longer with us," Elizabeth says. What she'd actually said is that he _gave up everything_. He's _dead_? "I'm going to save him."

"You can't bring people back to life," Yu tells her.

"You do it all the time, I'm sure," she says. "In your TV world or whatever you called it."

"That's different," Yu argues. "That's in a place where the laws of reality don't work normally. If I tried to being anyone back with a revival bead in the real world it wouldn't work!"

"You're right," Elizabeth concedes. "But he didn't die - not really. He's still out there, just in a different shape. If I can figure out how to separate him from the seal without breaking it, then I can save him."

Yu doesn't understand how a person can become a seal. None of this makes any sense. "You're crazy," he tells her.

"I have been told that before," she cheerfully informs him.

"How did he become a seal?" Yu can't wrap his head around it. " _Why_ did he?"

"He did it because he loved too much," Elizabeth says, explaining everything and nothing all at once, "and because he knew no one else could. His bonds forged the way."

_His bonds_. Yu has heard Margaret and Igor throw that word around so many times. It's his bonds that give him power. Through the arcana he obtains, his strength grows.

He still doesn't understand how, but he knows what to say.

"It sounds like he knew what he was getting into," Yu says. "He knew what he was agreeing to."

"You're right," Elizabeth agrees. "But I cannot accept this. I will find a way to release him from this burden."

Yu understands. "Good luck," he tells her, and she smiles.

She tilts her head, expression shifting. "Oh! It's time." As she takes a step backwards towards the elevator door, Yu feels the room begin to slow down. "Meeting you was interesting. Have fun saving the girl you love!"

Elizabeth waves, and Yu doesn't get to respond. He blinks, and he isn't standing anymore. He's back in his limo, Margaret looking his way with an odd expression.

"Yu," she greets, schooling herself back into her usual pleasant neutrality. "Did you have an enjoyable trip?"

He thinks about Elizabeth, and how volatile talking to her was. She was a bundle of energy, but she wasn't much worse than Teddie, if he's being honest.

"It was alright," he decides, slumping against the car seat. He's glad to be back in his limo and out of the elevator. "I met your sister."

His hands hit the seat and encounter softness. His gaze follows it, missing the way Margaret's eyes widen, and finds a blanket. "Was someone here?" He asks.

She doesn't attempt to hide it. "Yes," she says.

"Who was it?" He's curious, now. Maybe Elizabeth has gotten to him, with her never ending desire for knowledge.

"Another guest, from a different time," is how she answers. More time jumping. Odd. He soothes a hand over the blanket. He's never felt anything like it - Kanji would love this.

"Yu," Margaret calls, drawing his attention back. Her eyebrows are furrowed. "My sister. Was she-" she stops, faltering. She closes her eyes for a moment, composing herself. "No," she decides, "nevermind."

He doesn't get to question her on what she'd wanted to ask - she doesn't give him the chance. "Your journey is still continuing," she says. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

Nanako.

He can't believe he'd almost forgotten. 

"Wake me up," Yu requests, and when he opens his eyes, he's greeted with the ceiling in his borrowed room at the Dojima's. Sunlight streams through the window, and this is the day they _will_ get Nanako back. He will accept no other result. They can talk about Margaret's sister after he's made sure his own is safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drop a kudo and a comment if you enjoyed!


	2. Akira Kurusu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually wrote this one first. Originally, this was just a little. Self indulgent funky piece while i put akira through hell in my other fic and my friend was like 'what if you put yu and minato into different rooms too' and i went :eyes: but yeah. This bad boy started it all.

When Akira gets into bed, everything is normal. He shifts on his rickety bed in the attic, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in. Morgana steals half of his pillow, and he drifts into sleep.

When he sees that familiar blue, he expects his jail cell, with one leering, one apathetic twin. What he doesn't expect is to wake up in the back of a limo. There is a woman sitting at the over end to him, an open book in her hands.

He doesn't know where he is.

"Child," she says, slamming her book closed and looking directly at him. "You don't belong here."

"I don't know how I got here," Akira answers. The cushions beneath him are comfortable. He wouldn't mind waking up here instead of his cell more often.

He lifts a hand to push up his glasses, and freezes at the _clank_ he hears. Even though he's in a different room, he's still chained.

With a soft sigh, he absentmindedly rubs at his wrists. He’s glad his glasses came with him this time, though.

"Do you always have chains when you enter this place?" The woman asks, curious.

"Yeah," Akira admits, leaning heavily against the back of the seat. Even though he knows he's asleep, he's so tired. "I usually wake up in a cell. They like to call me 'inmate’.”

The woman hums. "They?"

"The twins," he clarifies. If they're in the same place and dressed similarly, maybe they know each other?

But she just shakes her head. "I'm afraid I don't know of any twins," she says, and she sounds troubled.

"There's that weird man, too," Akira adds. "He has a long nose."

"Our master," she says, and relaxes slightly. "May I see your key? It might help me remember who your attendants are."

"Key?" Akira has a few keys - the ones to LeBlanc, to his old house, to Ann's huge and empty house, the one to Ryuji's apartment. He doesn't think the woman is looking for any of those ones, though.

"My apologies," she says. "The key to your room?" She gestures to the interior of the vehicle.

Oh.

"I dont have one," Akira says, rubbing under his eyes. They're so itchy. "They never gave me one."

"Hm. That’s odd." 

"How so?" To Akira, everything about this place is odd. He would never say that to the twins, though.

"Either you have a lot of internal issues," she says, and ouch. Way to go straight for his jugular. "Or your attendants aren’t doing their job properly."

She's looking at him differently, now. It's weird. He's used to this shade of blue degrading him and causing him pain, but this woman has been decent to him, so far. He doesn't know what to make of it. This is uncharted territory.

"Who are you?" He asks. When he'd first woken up in his cell, Igor had introduced the twins, but there's no one here to do that this time. He doesn't want to keep calling her 'the woman.' If he can lead his friends into someone's mind and steal people's hearts, then he can take the initiative here.

"Oh- Forgive me," is how she responds. "My name is Margaret. I'm a resident of the Velvet Room, just as your 'twins' are, made to serve anyone who visits us. And what is your name?"

"I'm Akira," he says, and she continues talking.

"Ordinarily," she says, "you being here wouldn't be an issue. But we have a guest currently, and if he were to enter this room while you were here, it would be... most troublesome."

Akira understands. This room isn't meant for him. If the actual guest shows up and sees him here, it could cause problems.

"Tell me more about your twins," Margaret requests. 

"Okay," Akira agrees, even though he doesn't know what to say that wouldn't get him killed by them. "One has a braid and the other two buns."

"I see," Margaret says patiently. "What are their names?"

"Justine and Caroline," Akira supplies. At the mentions of their names, he subconsciously lifts a hand to his hip - the last place Caroline had hit him. 

"Odd," Margaret says, eyes narrowing. "Unfortunately, I don't recognise their names. You either come from before I was made or from further on, when I have a different role."

That's a lot for Akira's brain to comprehend. Even though he's sleeping in the real world, they'd just gotten done defeating Kaneshiro; he's feeling the effects of it here, and he isn’t processing any of this properly. Is she implying he’s time travelled? "What?"

"Never mind," Margaret says, and as she looks at him, her expression softens. "You look tired."

Akira laughs, but it lack humour. "You can tell?" He asks sarcastically. He's _exhausted_. He doesn’t regret agreeing to be the leader, but that on top of his part time work is beginning to wear him down. Maybe he should drop one of his jobs. 

He grimaces as soon as he realises he’d just back talked. Even though she's been kind to him so far, past experience dictates that lashing out at a resident here will get him hurt. "Sorry."

"Don't be," Margaret says, studying him. "I imagine the journey you're on is long and arduous. I don't blame you for being upset."

Akira doesn't know how to react to that. Margaret keeps on going. "Previous guests could get like this as well, occasionally," she admits, and tugs open a hidden compartment beneath her seat. She pulls out a blanket, and moves down the vehicle with it gripped within her hands. 

Margaret holds the blue blanket out for Akira to take, but he just stares at it, not comprehending. He takes too long, and she unravels it for him, throwing it up and tucking it around his form. 

"Rest," she says. "You seem to need it." She returns to her original seat, but keeps her eyes on him. 

Margaret is right. Akira clenches the blanket in his hands, and is surprised by how soft it feels. He lifts it to his cheek and closes his eyes, feeling. His shoulders unclench, tension leaving him. Sitting there, curled up on the seat with the blanket wraped around him securely, he drifts. For a moment, he almost forgets where he is. 

He doesn't know how long he sits there like that before Margaret speaks up.

"I am sorry to say this," she tells him, and he forces his eyes to open. She's looking to his left, and he follows her gaze. A shadowy figure is starting to flicker into existence beside him. "But you need to go now." Her eyes flit between them before locking onto Akira. "You need to wake up."

The limo vanishes, and he bolts upright on a bed.

"Inmate," Caroline snaps. "You're back. Never do that again."

Akira's heart sinks. He's here again. He collapses back against the stone prison bed, sighing.

Wait- hang on. He blinks in surprise. When did this blanket get here? For a moment, he thinks he brought it back with him, but then he realises it's a different colour. There's a pillow, too.

"Give me those," Caroline snaps, holding out a hand through the bars of the cell. "It- He shouldn't have left them here."

Akira refuses, curling up on the bed and tugging the blanket over his eyes. Beneath it's soft white fabric, face buried against the pillow, he can almost pretend he's not where he is.

" _Inmate_!" Caroline snaps, impatient.

"I think we should let him keep it," Justine says, and this launches Caroline into an argument.

Akira doesn't care to hear it. He shuffles to get more comfortable on the bed. Was someone else here while he was gone?

That thought is on his mind as he lets himself drift off, the sounds of the twins arguing blocked out. When he next opens his eyes, it’s to the wooden beams of LeBlanc’s attic, and Morgana’s black and white fur. 

  
“Wake up,” the cat tells him. “You’ll be late to school.”

  
He sits up, causing Morgana to slide off his chest and into his lap. He yowls angrily, but Akira runs his fingers under his chin and he quiets. 

  
He wonders if he’ll ever wake up in that limo again. It was a nice kind of different. For a moment, it had almost seemed like his chains were lighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter too! Thank you for reading, and please consider dropping a nice comment


	3. Minato Arisato

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Minato is,,, my favourite. The only persona protagonist that's made me cry (i cried at nanako but that doesnt count everyone cried there its law). Just a guy who loved his friends ;;

Minato wakes up. That in and of itself is unbelievable. He shouldn’t have been able to do it.

He hasn't been awake since March 5th. That was the price he'd agreed to pay, when he gave up his existence to become Nyx's seal and subsequently save the world and his friends. 

He lets his eyes slide shut again. If he's woken up, then that probably means there's something wrong with the seal. Maybe if he sleeps again, it'll fix it-

Something smacks against metal near him, and his eyes open. He sees stone surrounding him.

"Inmate," a voice snaps. "Wake up."

Frowning, Minato pushes himself up with one hand. He sees two small figures dressed in familiar blue, and behind them a recognisable desk. "A Velvet Room?" He mutters. He's in a cell, and he distinctly remembers his room being an elevator. He remembers it arriving at it's destination. He doesn't think he's supposed to be here.

"Where is our guest?" One of the twins asks. She has her hair in a long braid. 

Minato shrugs. He just woke up here - he's got nothing to do with whatever resident he took the place of.

"What did you do with him?" The other twin demands, scowling at him. She brandishes a metal stick in his direction.

"Dunno," Minato says. His voice sounds rough and it scratches at his throat, as if he hasn't spoken in a while. He probably hasn't. He doesn't know what year it is. 

"Who are you?" The other twins asks. She has a clipboard in her hands. Is this what the Velvet Room has come to? Writing guest's compendiums on clipboards? He doesn't know how to feel about that.

"Minato," he says, and coughs into his hand. His throat feels awful. One advantage of becoming the seal: there is no pain. "Who are you?"

"I am Justine," she answers. "My sister is Caroline. We were created to serve the guest of this room."

"I know," Minato says, letting his arm slip so he can lay back down. "I used to be a guest."

"You've visited this place before?" Caroline asks, and she sounds surprised. 

"My journey ended," Minato says, yawning. He can feel a tugging, deep within his soul. "I'm not supposed to be here." He's cold. Why doesn't this cell have some sort of blanket? Whoever is the guest must have a fucked up brain.

"No," Justine agrees. She hesitates for a moment before continuing. "Will you tell us about your journey? Our master doesn't let us leave the room."

Minato's eyebrows furrow. He used to be able to take Elizabeth out whenever she wanted and Igor didn't seem to care. Maybe the man has changed. 

“He _does_ let us out,” Caroline protests.

“He doesn’t let us go further than the entrance doors,” Justine corrects. Caroline huffs; she doesn’t add anything else.

Something here seems weird in general. If this was his room, he'd probably put effort into fixing it but- hnn. He's tired. And the tugging is getting more insistent.

"Alright," he agrees to Justine’s request, pushing the thought ~~that something is wrong wrong _wrong_ with this room~~ away. "But I don't know how accurate it'll be."

"What do you mean?" Caroline asks. She crosses her arms, tapping impatiently against the crook of her elbow. 

"I don't know how long I've been gone for," Minato explains. He blinks slowly, fighting exhaustion. "Things might have changed."

"You've been gone?"

"Yes." He yawns.

"Where did you go?" Justine questions, tilting her head to the side and studying him. 

"I went where I had to," Minato explains vaguely. He doesn't really want to get into it if they don't already know. There's no point. 

It's so fucking cold in this room, though. He waves a hand, and a blanket is on top of him, soft and white against the hard and blue of the room.

"Woah," Caroline says, sounding fascinated despite herself. "How did you do that?"

He doesn't answer. Instead he turns over, shifting to get comfortable on the bed. How does this guest live like this? Christ.

"Answer when we're talking to you." There's the sound of an object hitting the gates again. Minato guesses Caroline is going feral or something. 

"Why?" He asks, not even opening his eyes. He is so tired.

"I- why? Because- we-"

"It's the decent thing to do," Justine takes over.

"True," Minato supposes. He forces his eyes open, heaving himself up using an elbow. It’s getting harder and harder to remember how his body is supposed to work. "But you're not my attendant, and I'm not your guest. What if I don't want to tell you?"

Caroline opens her mouth to retort, her eyes narrowed, but Justine beats her to it. "You would be within your rights to," she says, “given the circumstances. But while you may not be _our_ guest, you're still _a_ guest. You should treat us with respect."

If Minato only has this moment to be alive again, he isn't going to waste it by showing 'respect' to some self-entitled brats. 

He yawns, lowering himself back down. "Still don't want to." Gazing up at the concrete ceiling, he feels a tugging at his soul. He knows he has to go soon.

He really doesn't want to.

"Will you at least answer one question?" Caroline asks.

Minato considers it. He doesn't see any harm in doing so. "Fine."

"Who are you, really?" Justine asks. "No one should be able to do what you just did."

Minato's eyes slide closed against his will, and he lets out a sigh. "What's the point in having the powers of the Universe if I can't use them to make myself a blanket?"

Silence. And then- "The _Universe_?!" The twins exclaim together.

He yawns again, and the tugging increases. "Yes," he says, pulling the blanket up to his chin and curling around his knees. He thinks it's been a long time since he had a body. It feels weird to bend his limbs like this. He wants to continue existing, to keep on feeling; he knows that he can't.

"Who _are_ you?" One twin asks again, awestruck. Minato can’t keep track of who's who anymore. The tugging is too strong ~~insistent, demanding, obstinate~~ , taking up too many of his thoughts.

"I told you," he says, shifting and trying to get comfortable. He pats the bed and a pillow is there (it was a mistake – the tired is within now, all consuming and down to the bone ~~he doesn’t want to go~~ ). "I'm Minato."

"You are the Universe," the other twin says. She sounds disbelieving. 

"Yes." 

"But you're supposed to be-"

"I know," Minato snaps, feeling the exhaustion within his soul. "I _know_. I can feel it pulling."

Silence. And then- "Why did you do it?" It's asked quietly, a secret shared between three while the master is away.

"I had to," Minato answers, just as hushed. The answer is obvious. He was dead and then he wasn't, and it was thanks to the people he called his friends. "They gave me life. I did it to save theirs."

It's true that he saved the world, and he would do it again within a heartbeat. But the truth is this: he had one main motivation and Igor knew it. The lives of the people who taught him how to live again were at stake, and that's all he cared about. The fate of the world was not unimportant, but in that moment and in Minato’s eyes, it had come second.

The twins are silent. Minato finds the will and strength to force his eyes open. They don't look like they understand, but he hadn't expected them to. Something is definitely off about this room - these twins are like Elizabeth, but he can tell there's something weird. He feels it more acutely, now.

But the tugging is too strong for him to resist much longer.

"I have to go," he mumbles, even though he doesn’t want to. Closing his eyes, he twists to press his face against the pillow.

"Wait-" one twin says, but it's too late.

Minato is at Nyx's side again, and he feels the seal draining him. In a single instance, he stops longing for existence, and he stops wanting to be more. In this place, there are no emotions or thoughts or feelings. 

He exhales and does not breathe again, as there is no need for it. His heart stops, because it is not required. His body unfurls, because it is not necessary. 

He takes his place as the seal and Sleeps, keeping Nyx contained for another eternity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .....minato is my favourite. And this concludes the fic. Thanks for reading


	4. Kotone Shiomi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kotone Shiomi.... i love her. I know the usual name is like. Minako etc but,,, i like this one a lot ;;

Kotone wakes up in a Velvet Room that isn't hers. She knows this immediately, because Theodore isn't a pretty girl and _be still her beating heart_. Also, she's in a limo and not an elevator, but _details, details_.

"Oh- hi," the girl says, looking up from where she's scribbling words on some paper. "You're new." She immediately haphazardly shoves the paper into her bag. Interesting.

"I'm Kotone," she answers. "What's your name?"

The girl doesn't answer, glaring at her instead. "How did you wake up here?"

"I have no idea," Kotone says cheerfully. "I just- fell asleep, and here I am. Do you know my resident? His name is Theodore."

"What?" The other questions, baffled. "You feel weird," she says, instead of answering the question.

Kotone is okay with that. This choice of topic sounds just as interesting. "Weird how?"

"I don't know," she answers, and leans back, crossing her arms. "You- hn." She tilts her head, squinting. "You don't feel like Yu."

Kotone doesn't understand how the fuck she can't feel like herself. It's possible this girl is a dumbass, but Kotone puts up with Junpei and Yukari on a daily basis, so she has experience dealing wi- oh. It's a name. Now _she's_ the dumbass.

"Who's Yu?"

The girl stares at Kotone, not making any move to answer. "My name is Marie," she says slowly. Kotone doesn't know if Marie misunderstood her question or if she just decided to introduce herself.

"I'm. Hm. I guess I'm a resident of this room," she continues.

"You guess?" Kotone questions. She's only met one other Velvet Room resident, but Theodore was sure of himself and his mission and what he needed to do. She doesn't understand how Marie can just- not know.

Marie scowls, her face scrunching up. She glares at Kotone. "Yeah, I _guess_ , stupididiotmoron."

Okay yikes. "Sorry," Kotone tries, and that seemingly placates her. "Do you know how I can go back to my room? I needed to talk to Theodore."

"I don't know," Marie grumbles, crossing her arms. Kotone gets the distinct impression that she's made the other girl mad. "Margaret usually wakes up Yu when he can't do it himself, but I've never been able to do it. I think you have to wake up on your own."

"Oh." Even if Marie is mad at her, it's not a _huge_ loss to Kotone if she's stuck here with her. A pretty girl is a pretty girl, and she does seem nice. "So uh. You and this Yu - are you close?"

Marie narrows her eyes at Kotone. "I guess," she says. "He was my first friend. He's how I met the others."

"I see, I see." That makes sense - Kotone always got the distinct impression that she was Theodore's only friend, besides the feral sister he's mentioned in passing and refuses to let her meet. "Does Igor let him take you outside? Sometimes I take Theo out."

"You keep mentioning this 'Theodore'," Marie says. "But I don't know him. I've only ever met Margaret." She frowns, considering. "She probably knows him."

"Margaret?"

"She's Yu's attendant. I'm... like an extra. But Margaret's said she has siblings before."

Siblings _plural_. Kotone wonders if Margaret is Theodore's feral sister or if there's another one of them. She decides to ask. 

"What? No," Marie says, affronted. "Margaret isn't 'feral'. She can be a little mean sometimes, but she's usually calm and collected." 

So Margaret _isn't_ the feral sibling. Oh well. At least now she has a name to throw at Theodore. If she ever gets to wake up from here.

"What were you doing when I came in?" Kotone asks. "You had some paper."

Marie flushes even as she scowls. "It- I was- It was nothing! Stupididiotjerkihateyou-"

"Okay okay!" Kotone cuts in. "I'm sorry." If she'd known Marie would get so defensive about it, she wouldn't have asked. She's used to Saori, who's always eager to talk about what she's written. 

Still scowling, Marie studies Kotone. She must see something in her expression, because Marie's own relaxes. "Poetry," she mumbles.

"I- what?"

"It's poetry," Marie snaps, frowning again. "Okay? Yousuckyoujerk-"

"Oh! _Poetry_!" Kotone says, cutting off Marie's train of insults. "That's fun. My friend Saori likes to write, but I don't think she's ever written poetry..."

"What _does_ she write?" Marie asks, oddly curious.

"Short stories," Kotone says. "Usually fantasy-based."

"Fan-tah-see?"

"Yeah, like-" Kotone scrambles for a way to explain. "Stories set in a different world. Usually with magic and fairies."

"Fay-rees?"

"Little human shaped creatures with insect wings."

"I don't get it," Marie says, frowning. "Why would anyone want to write about that?"

"Fantasy or fairies?"

Marie scrunches her nose up before answering. "Both."

Kotone hums. "Fantasy means you can write about worlds that aren't ours. I guess it can be an escape."

"An escape?"

"Yeah. Reading about a different world means you don't have to think about our own for a while."

Marie is silent for a moment, her expression relaxing. "That makes sense."

"Oh, good-"

"The fay-rees don't, though."

Kotone laughs. "They're the typical creature that comes to mind when someone thinks about magic. For some reason." She doesn't know why, though. That'd be a fun googling spree to go on when she can't sleep and is waiting for the Midnight Hour to come.

"You're weird," Marie states, frowning again.

"That's fair," Kotone says, because she's sure Junpei at least has said the same to her. And she's said it back. 

"My poetry is the same, I guess," Marie mutters, her shoulders lifting to her ears. 

"What do you mean?" Kotone asks, treading carefully. Marie's the one who brought up her poetry, but in the small amount of time this meeting has been so far, Kotone knows talking about it can make the girl aggressive.

"That it's. A form of escape."

Oh. _Oh_.

"It's also a-" Marie stops and sighs, shooting Kotone a look. "Look, I- I lost my memories. My poetry is- it's- I don't even know why I'm telling you this!"

"It's because I'm pretty," Kotone jokes, smirking. 

Marie looks at her, considering it, before nodding. "Yeah," she says. "You _are_ pretty. Maybe that's it?"

Kotone finds herself flushing. Holy shit. She was joking. 

"Whatever," Marie mutters. "Either way, my poetry is a way of- I'm using it to remember."

"Oh." Interesting. "Is it working?"

Marie shrugs, scowling. "I don't know."

Oh yeah. Poetry is a sensitive topic. "You'll do it," Kotone says. "I'm sure you will."

"Thanks," Marie says, and the frown finally leaves her face. "Yu is helping me."

"He's the guest here, right?" At Marie's nod, Kotone continues. "Us guests are good at helping."

"Yes," Marie says, looking at Kotone with an odd expression. "You're right." There's a slight smile on her face, but suddenly it shifts. "You're going to wake up, soon."

And within the space of a blink, Kotone goes from seeing Marie sitting across from her to having Theodore's face hovering above her.

"Oh-" he says, and takes a step back. "You're back."

"Yeah," Kotone answers, getting to her feet. "Where did I go?"

"To a different time," Theodore says. He narrows his eyes and tilts his head. "And to a different world?"

"Huh." Interesting. Kotone has a more pressing question than anything to do with that though, and she smirks as she asks it. "Does the name 'Margaret' mean anything to you?"

Theodore pales immediately, his eyes widening. "How do you know that name? Did- did you meet her?"

Kotone was right. That _was_ a way better question.

"I thought she was your sister," Kotone says. 

"I- she is," Theodore confirms, his eyebrows furrowing. "But-"

"I didn't know you had _t_ _wo_ sisters," Kotone says. "When can I meet the feral one?"

Theodore sighs. "So you _did_ meet Margaret."

"Nah, only in the original draft," Kotone says. "I met a girl called Marie."

"Marie," Theodore echoes. "The name sounds familiar, but I can't place it."

"She seemed sad," Kotone muses, looking away from Theodore. She'd wanted to talk to him, but for the life of her she can't remember why, now. 

"I'm going to go now," Kotone tells him.

"Alright," he says, used to her abrupt antics. "Take care, now."

She gives a vague goodbye in response, but her mind is preoccupied. All she can think about is the girl who doesn't know who she is, and writes poetry both to get lost and remember. 

She hopes she can see Marie again sometime.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boom. A bonus chapter. Originally this was gonna be kotone and margaret, but margaret already had a chapter. And i love marie so much... thank u for reading


End file.
